I nsiders Perspective Tom Pecorini December 16 2014 Tom Pecorini Fellow in Polymers Technology Division PhD from Lehigh University Started at Eastman in 1992 Involved in many plastics development projects for SP ID: 1002239
Download Presentation The PPT/PDF document "Polymer Recycling – An" is the property of its rightful owner. Permission is granted to download and print the materials on this web site for personal, non-commercial use only, and to display it on your personal computer provided you do not modify the materials and that you retain all copyright notices contained in the materials. By downloading content from our website, you accept the terms of this agreement.
1. Polymer Recycling – An Insider’s PerspectiveTom PecoriniDecember 16, 2014
2. Tom PecoriniFellow in Polymers Technology DivisionPhD from Lehigh UniversityStarted at Eastman in 1992Involved in many plastics development projects for SPEastman’s representative to the APRChairman of the ASTM Section D20.95 on the RICs
3. Recycling OverviewDefinition of RecyclingTypes of Recycling Post Consumer - From Home to BalePlastics - From Bale to PelletPlastic Recycling StandardsResin Identification Codes
4. Definition of RecyclingAll materials are potentially recyclable, but not all materials are recycledRecycling involves BOTH collecting a material, AND having an economic incentive to convert it into a productMany factors limit both collection and economic incentiveRecycling is a fight against entropy!!ApathyDispersionSeparation
5. Post Consumer Recycling Uses the residential waste stream as a source of materialMust have >300lbs of common articles to make recycling worthwhilePaper/cardboard are the moneymakersAl, Fe, glass, PET and HDPE containers are break evenThere is no economic incentive to recycle anything elseDeposit laws provide incentiveDon’t assume every composition within a given “resin” can be recycled together
6. Other Types of Recycling Post industrialArticles that have a controlled distribution system are also recycled, even at lower volumesExamples include computers and bulk water bottlesEnergy recoveryPlastics have high energy contentEnergy recovery would dramatically reduce the amount of plastics diverted from the landfillEurope practices energy recovery, US does not
7. Post Consumer - From Home to BaleSource separationResidents place different articles in different binsRequires more effort by residentsOriginal form of domestic recycling, but becoming less commonSingle streamResidents place all recyclables in a common bin and MRFs separate articlesGreatly improves recycling rates due to simplicityDirty MRFBoth waste and recyclables are collected togetherMRFs sort everything
8. Single Stream MRFsThese videos show how a single stream Material Recovery Facility (MRF) operateshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GP3JuiX5BYhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osDD1TCBOJghttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjzyvzLSzNA
9. Plastics - From Bale to Pellet96% of all post consumer plastics recycled in NA are bottles made from PET and HDPEEmerging interest in PET thermoforms and PP moldingsMRFs bale the bottlesReclaimers convert the bales into pelletsConverters turn the pellets into productsRoughly 350 MRFs and 40 Reclaimers in US
10. US HDPE Recycling (2013)End-UseMM lbs% of available% of bottles soldTotal available3,300n/a100%Total recycled1,100100%33%Non-Food Bottles39035%12%Pipe29026%9%Molded Parts29026%9%Film & Sheet505%1%Net Export808%2%
11. US PET Recycling (2013)End-UseMM lbs% of available% of bottles soldTotal available5,700n/a100%Total recycled1,800100%31%Fiber56031%10%Bottles48027%8%Sheet & Film31017%5%Strapping1508%3%Net Export30017%5%
12. Contamination in Plastics RecyclingContamination reduces the value of a recycled productSources of contaminationFood productsLook-alike bottlesLabels, handles, etc.The tolerance for contamination depends on the end-useMost plastics are down-cycled, instead of re-cycledIt is extremely difficult to get the quality of PET PCR good enough to go back into PET bottlesFood contact, clear, pressurized, high barrier, etc
13. HDPE ProcessMRFGrindPelletizeFlake WashSink/FloatColor SortConvertersReclaimer
14. PET ProcessMRFFull Bottle WashGrindFlake WashSink/FloatSeparateColor MetalPVCPelletizeConvertersReclaimer
15. Plastics Recycling StandardsMany organizations post documents and standards to help people understand the impact of their designs and innovations on the recycling stream as well as to show the benefits of recycling plasticsAssociation of Post Consumer Plastics Recycling (APR)National Assn. for PET Container Resources (NAPCOR)American Chemical Council (ACC)Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI)Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC)
16. SPC Label for Recovery16
17. Resin Identification CodesIn 1988, the only plastic articles being collected and recycled in the US were PET soda bottles and HDPE milk jugsIt was assumed that other resins would be recycled if only they could be properly identified in the waste streamThus, SPI developed the RIC system to identify the six most common packaging resins found in the municipal waste streamThe RICs are being updated by ASTM, at SPI’s requestASTM D7611 is the Standard
18. Resin Identification Code FactsRICs are NOT recycling codesNOT all articles with an RIC are collected for recyclingNOT all articles with a given RIC are recycled - many compositions within a given RIC are not compatible with each otherThe RICs were NOT originally intended for use by the general public - the chasing arrows on an RIC were merely intended to help sorters on a sorting line identify the resin“7” does NOT mean contains BPA or other dangerous chemicals
19. Changes to D7611Convert the Chasing Arrows into TrianglesAdd “sub-codes” to improve identification1-67Become adopted by the states
20. Questions?